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What is the TV Licensing Simple Payment Plan?

Applications for the Simple Payment Plan trial closed on 30 September 2018.

What is the Simple Payment Plan?

Legislation was introduced to allow TV Licensing to test a new way to pay for a TV Licence from 1 April 2018. The Simple Payment Plan is for certain groups of customers who find it most difficult to pay the licence fee.

Customers who qualified to take part in this trial were able to choose from either a fortnightly or monthly payment plan that spreads the cost of a licence over 12 months, which is different to current payment plans. The Simple Payment Plan also offers flexibility if a payment is missed, as it can be spread across the remainder of the plan instead of having to pay double the amount next time. If payments are missed three months in a row, customers are removed from the Simple Payment Plan and won’t be able to join again.

More about the Simple Payment Plan

The Simple Payment Plan trial began on 1 April 2018 and the closing date for applications was 30 September 2018. The trial will last until September 2019, when the last licences can be issued.

Who was eligible to join the Simple Payment Plan?

Customers were eligible to take part if they:

had been interviewed under caution for TV Licence fee evasion and so could face prosecution

had previously held a licence that was cancelled within the last six months because of missed payments.

TV Licensing invited customers in the groups above to apply for the plan.

Qualifying customers could also be referred to the Simple Payment Plan by the following debt advice charities if they were experiencing financial difficulties:

How are payments made on the Simple Payment Plan?

Customers who qualified to take part in this trial chose from either a fortnightly or monthly payment plan. Customers paying via this scheme can make payments:

over the counter at any PayPoint outlet

via the Simple Payment Plan website

over the phone

via a Paythru link sent to a smartphone via SMS

Alternatively, payments can be taken from a bank account via a monthly Direct Debit or by setting up a Continuous Payment Authority (CPA), where payments are taken from a debit or credit card monthly or fortnightly.